Council to assess the accessibility of Wiltshire's taxis
It's following new government guidance
Wiltshire Council will be carrying out a review of taxi ranks in major towns across the county to assess the accessibility of the sites.
This comes after recent government guidance placed an emphasis on accessible transport for the 13.9 million disabled people across the UK.
The new taxi and private hire vehicle licensing guidance states: “Disabled people are particularly reliant on taxi and private hire vehicle services, either because they may not have access to a private car, are unable to use public transport, or because the built environment is insufficiently accessible to meet their needs.
“This can mean that the availability of an accessible, affordable taxi or private hire vehicle service can make the difference that allows them to live their life the way they want to, and ultimately, to fulfil their potential.”
As a result of this update, Wiltshire’s taxi licensing team will be undertaking a review of the ranks whilst assessing accessibility issues such as dropped kerbs and shelters.
Councillors were told about the plans in the latest licensing committee meeting on Monday, March 4.
Tom Ince, Wiltshire Council’s Principal Compliance Officer, said that this review would also consider how to implement electric vehicle charging points.
He described the electrification of Wiltshire’s taxi fleet as a “big challenge.”